The Reason Why
by ngcskate
Summary: Daryl Dixon only cares about one thing as the world goes to hell. His family. My interpretation of the early days of the zombie apocalypse and how Daryl and Merle deal with it. Mostly canon, will introduce new characters to the Dixon brothers lives, but will join with the characters from the series as the story goes on. Non original characters belong to Kirkman and AMC.
1. Chapter 1

**The Reason Why - Chapter One**

"Time to get out of here, little brother."

Daryl Dixon looked up from the motorcycle he was working on, a scowl on his face. It was a hot and humid Georgia afternoon and Daryl had a line-up of motorcycles and cars that needed his attention before he left the garage for the day. The last thing he needed was to have to deal with his (probably) drunk older brother for the rest of the afternoon.

"The hell you talking about, Merle? I have ta finish my shift. Y'know damn well I can't afford to leave early. Got shit I gotta take care of."

"Well now, you got yourself into that mess didn't you?" Merle grinned down at him and clapped him on the shoulder. "Been there a couple o'times myself. Never dug myself as deep as you, mind you." Daryl glared at his laughing brother in disgust. "Probably won't have to worry yourself about it soon, ain't you been watching the news?"

Merle strode across the oil spattered floor, avoiding random car parts that cluttered the garage and turned on the television that was balanced on a shelf in the corner. "Check it out, the world is ending, little brother, people are going crazy."

"Like you watch the news," Daryl scoffed, barely glancing at the screen before kneeling down to tinker with the cycle again. It was a beautiful thing - a vintage Harley cruiser, all original. Daryl ran his hand over the engine, admiring the black and chrome machine. He couldn't believe anyone would actual trust him with it. There had been a day, not too long ago, when he would have just hopped on and ridden it away. A metallic clatter made him turn to glance at his brother, who was digging through a battered toolbox.

"We'll take this with us. Could come in handy."

"That don't belong to me!" Daryl stared his brother. "You crazy, Merle? What you on, little early in the day to be this ripped, ain't it?"

"I ain't on nothing, I swear. Something's going on, I tell you."

Daryl turned back to the motorcycle and continued to ignore his older brother. It had always been like this. Merle looked out for Merle and Merle alone. Unless he wanted something or needed your help. And since Merle had never needed Daryl's help, he was looking for something. A handout? Daryl sneered. This job was a good one, but it didn't pay near enough. Any money he earned already had a home, he couldn't spare any just so his useless brother could score a fix. He set to work on the motorcycle, trying to tune Merle's crazy ranting out of his head. Thing was, he and Merle had a bit of a reputation in these parts. Getting a solid job had been difficult. Both Dixon brothers had been known to overindulge in pretty much everything, drugs, alcohol, women, whatever.  
They shared a ramshackle house that Merle had found abandoned at the edge of town. Merle would disappear for months at a time - with some woman or courtesy of the law - and Daryl never really knew when he would turn up, so Daryl fixed up what he could and considered it his house. Both of them had grown up in the woods and were probably more comfortable there than in the city. They lived off the land mostly, hunting and fishing. While Merle was perfectly happy to live that way, hand to mouth, day to day, relying on his wits and not much else, Daryl had tried to change. He had to change, really.

This job had been hard won and badly needed. It had taken him a lot of hard work and long hours to prove himself - to show his boss that he could do the job and was trustworthy enough to leave in the shop alone. Now, here was his older brother who would probably hang around all afternoon sitting on the cars and harass any customers that might wander in. Merle was gonna ruin one of the few good things he had going in his life.

"What was that?" Daryl turned in the direction of the television. "Turn that thing up!" Daryl stared at the small set as scenes of hundreds of vehicles jammed on the interstate flashed across the screen.

"See, I told you. We need to get a move on."

Daryl held his hand up for silence as he listened to the news reports.

"...police recommend that everyone remain calm and travel to the nearest city. In Atlanta, various decontamination stations have been set up throughout the city for those fearing infection and those already knowingly exposed. Shelter and food units are also standing by. I repeat..."

Daryl slowly turned toward his brother. "What the hell is goin' on?"

"The dead are walkin', little brother, and we are going to be their dinner if we don't get a move on."

"The dead are walkin'," Daryl shook his head and threw his wrench at the wall. "You're talking crazy, Merle. Get out of my goddam way. I need to finish this up!" Daryl shoved Merle aside and turned back to the motorcycle.  
"Listen to me," Merle grabbed Daryl's shoulders, clutching his grease smeared overalls in his fists, and spun him around, forcing him look him in the eyes. Even though Daryl was slightly taller than Merle, the older brother roughly commanded his younger brother's attention. "Our no good government unleashed some shit and now we're all gonna pay. I know damn well what they're like. I worked for 'em long enough. I'm not drunk, or high. They showed 'em on TV, man. They're killing people, eatin 'em."

Daryl let his gaze drop so that he was staring at Merle's dirty t-shirt clad chest. His voice came out a cautious whisper. "Eatin 'em? Like...zombies? Like the movies?"

"Exactly," Merle offered Daryl a thin smile. "Just like some fuckin' movie. Zombieland right in our own front lawn."

Merle turned Daryl around to face the TV. Images of panic, chaos and carnage filled the screen.

"Jesus Christ! This...it can't be real."

"It's real and we need to haul our asses to Atlanta, right now. Go get some of our hunting gear and shit and get to the city." Merle began to head for the narrow door of the garage office.

"No!"

"No?" Merle turned around to face his brother. Daryl rarely disagreed with him. A good brotherly fight usually settled matters anytime he dared to. After all, Merle was the big brother and big brother always knew best.

"We gotta get Angel first, make sure she's safe," Daryl protested.

"No time, she's on the other damn side of town," Merle argued. "Besides, one less thing to worry about, am I right? Been nothing but a damn burden since she was..."

Daryl slammed his brother against the thin wall of the garage. "Shut the hell up. I ain't leaving without my little girl."


	2. Chapter 2

**The Reason Why - Chapter Two**

_"What the hell?" Daryl slammed his can of beer down on the coffee table, making the surface jump and the ashes from his long forgotten cigarette spill onto the burned and scarred surface. He jumped to his feet, towering over the slight woman who was now cowering on the sofa. "I only just met you, not too long ago, how the hell..."_

_"I'm not a slut, Daryl Dixon," the woman protested. "You an' me, we was both drunk. I'm not that type of girl, usually." _  
_  
Daryl almost laughed at her attempt at primness. Any girl that was dressed in tight jeans and a purple tank top that left pretty much nothing to his imagination and that had been trying to put her hand down his jeans just a few moments ago had no right saying she wasn't that type of girl. _

"_I know you probably don't remember that night, baby, but I sure do." Bree gave him her best sexy smile. "You were amazing, Daryl."_  
_  
Daryl had to admit to himself that he couldn't recall the evening in question. Him being drunk wasn't a surprise, that had been most nights for him. Taking home a chick, now that hardly ever happened. Not that he was innocent. He lost his virginity when Merle had dragged him to a prostitute "friend" of his at the age of 14. And many a drunken evening at the bar had led to going home with some girl or another and staying the night. He wasn't immune to a females charms, he just wasn't particularly comfortable around them. He enjoyed whatever they wanted to offer him, he just had to be damn good and drunk first. Fortunately or unfortunately, the Dixon reputation preceded him most places and folks simply avoided him, especially females. Which was just fine by him._  
_  
"Pregnant," Daryl spat out the word. "You sure?" _  
_  
"Of course I'm sure, you jackass." Bree pulled a cushion from behind her and threw it at him in anger. "I took the friggin' test near 'bout 3 times!"_

"_I mean, you sure it's mine?" he stared down at her, willing her to say she might be wrong, that maybe she wasn't pregnant with his baby._  
_  
"God damn you! I just told you, I ain't a slut. You know I ain't." Her voice started menacingly low and rose with each word, until she was screaming shrilly at him._  
_  
Daryl pulled his pack of cigarettes out of his jeans pocket and lit one with nervously shaking fingers. Bree defiantly glared up at him, her blue eyes daring him to disagree. What could he say? Bree was, perhaps, more of a redneck than he was. She had a pretty good reputation herself as being a party girl. He wished he could remember how he'd hooked up with her. She'd probably come up to him when he was halfway through a bottle of JD and offered him a good time._

"_I don't even know you that well!" Daryl paced circles around the small living room. "That don't mean a thing to me, Bree!" _  
_  
"I told you!" Bree stood up and smacked her hands flat against his chest, stopping him in his tracks. "We was drunk, you weren't takin' no for an answer. I wasn't really lookin' for someone else to hop in the sack with after experiencin' somethin' like that!" _  
_  
Daryl felt his knees go weak and he sat heavily on the sofa. "Did I hurt you?" he whispered. _  
_  
"You got me pregnant!" Bree screeched. _  
_  
"No, did I hurt you? Punch you or anything like that?" _  
_  
Bree sat beside him and tried to push a lock of hair out of his eyes. Daryl flinched at her touch and pushed himself into the corner of the sofa. _  
_  
"No, you didn't hurt me." Bree said, gently kissing his cheek. "You were rough, but I...I could have stopped you, if I wanted to." _  
_  
Daryl raised his eyebrows at her. He easily outweighed her and he had taken down men larger than he was. There was no way she could have stopped him if he was determined enough. Especially if he was drunk. Just the thought that he could have behaved like his father, that he could have abused this woman for no good reason, other than his own pleasure, it made him sick. _  
_  
"I'm...I'm...sorry. I can be an ass when I'm drunk." _  
_  
"It's a little late and it's pretty weak, but, apology accepted." Bree rubbed his thigh and pushed herself closer to him._  
_  
"What are you gonna do?" Daryl questioned, as he twisted away from her. "You gonna keep it?" _

"_Of course I'm gonna have our baby!" she declared proudly._

"_You wanna keep it?" Daryl fiddled with the zipper on his leather vest. "I can't help you, I don't know nuthin' about babies."_  
_  
"Me either." Bree smiled brightly. "We'll have to learn together." _

"_Together?"_

"_Yeah, hon, we'll get married!" Bree's voice rose again, this time in excitement. "You can move in here with me and we'll be a little family." Bree flung her arms around his shoulders and kissed his lips, despite his firm head shake as he tried to move away from her._

"_I can't get married, Bree. I got no money, no job..." Daryl shrugged his shoulders. "Ain't you heard about us Dixons? You found yourself a real prize here." _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Daryl! The hell you think you're 'goin'?"

Daryl looked up from the backpack that he'd been stuffing clothes into. Merle was casually leaning in the doorway of the Dixon house, barring any possible exit.

"Let me by! I told you I was goin' to my little girl!" Daryl swung his knapsack onto his shoulder and tried to push past his brother.

"An' I told you we need to get a move on. The longer we wait to get on the road, the harder it will be to get into the city." Merle advanced towards his brother with a smirk on his face. "That little girl can just stay with her drunk ass momma. She'll be fine."

Daryl took a few steps back, mentally berating himself for not standing up to his brother - again. "I…I can't just leave her."

"Why not? You hardly ever see her."

"You know why I can only see her once a month!" Daryl protested.

"Any real daddy would wanna be with his kin all the time." Merle sneered. "Y'know…I think our daddy was here with us more than you've been there for that little girl."

"Fuck you! I ain't nothin' like Daddy." Daryl swung his fist at Merle, who was laughing as he dodged out of the way "Goddam you, Merle. I love my daughter. You know damn well that she would be here with me if her grandma didn't hate my guts."

Merle snorted. "Any brother of mine wouldn't let some damn court order stop him from anything."

"I ain't lettin' anything stop me." Daryl mumbled, as he backed away from Merle once more.

"Then why ain't you there with her right now?" Merle countered. "Why in the last ten years you only seen her a few times? You too afraid to land your pretty ass in county jail and become some big black boy's girlfriend? You ain't seen your girl grow up because of a goddam piece of paper! She's your daughter, damn it!"

"I wanna do right by her! I want her to know that I changed - for her. Maybe that's the difference between you and I." Daryl murmured. "I wanna be there for her, so I gotta do the right thing now."

"The right thing?" Merle spat on the mud spattered floor. "You and I aren't any different, brother. We're one and the same." He moved away from the doorway, gesturing to the door with a flourish. "Get the hell out of here."

Daryl stared at him for a moment, before he pushed open the tattered screen door. "You finish packing up what we need and I'll be back. I just gotta make sure she's okay. She's my blood, man. You and her, that's all I got. I'm not leaving without making sure."

Merle watched through the screen as Daryl slammed the truck door shut and gunned the engine. "Gotta make you mad, don't I, little brother? Gotta make you mad before you see the truth."__

"Bree? Where the hell are you?"   
_  
Daryl slammed the truck door shut and ran up the stairs of the little house. "Your ma called me at the garage, where are you?"_  
_  
He ran through the house, finding no sign of Bree or her mother, the bedroom was a mess and the house was in disarray, but that was not unusual. He finally found a note on the floor, under a table._  
_  
"Daryl, gone to hospital, baby can't wait for you. Meet us there."___

"I need to see Bree...uh...Porter. Bree Porter. She's having a baby."   
_  
"Are you her husband?" The woman at the registration desk looked him up and down, clearly not impressed by the dirty young man standing in front of her desk._  
_  
"Uh, no, I'm not...I'm the...I'm gonna be..." Daryl stammered. _  
_  
"You're going to have to wait in that room right over there, sir. I'll let the Porter's know you are here." The receptionist pointed at the small room across the hall._  
_  
Daryl leaned across the desk and shoved his finger at her chest. "Look here, Bree is havin' my kid and I need to be there, got me? I ain't sittin' in no waitin' room."___

Daryl stood at the back of the room, feeling ridiculous wearing the scrubs the nurse had thrown at him in the hallway. Bree was screaming in pain, her mother was shooting him dirty looks, and he just wanted to run away. After a few moments, Bree's mother strode over to him.   
_  
"It's almost time. I need to go call her father." Mrs. Porter told him. "You get over there with her." _  
_  
"Yes Ma'am." Daryl mumbled and slowly walked over to the spot she had just vacated. _  
_  
Bree latched onto his left hand as soon as he was at her bedside. "It hurts so bad." she whimpered. "I just want it to be over." _  
_  
Daryl winced as Bree squeezed his hand and tried to breathe her way through another contraction. "I'm sorry, Bree. I never meant for this to happen."_

"_Ah!" Bree screamed. "I have to push! Get this thing out of me!"_  
_  
Daryl winced as Bree's fingernails cut into the skin of his hand, her grip getting tighter while she pushed. He looked over to the doctor, who stepped aside momentarily so Daryl could see his child being born and he almost gagged when he saw the baby's head emerging. Bree gripped his hand, hard, not allowing him to pull away._

"_Don't leave me!" she screamed._

"_I ain't leaving. I just can't watch." Daryl whispered as the doctor and nurses surrounded the bed. One of the nurses shoved a chair behind Daryl just as his legs collapsed beneath him. Bree's screams filled the room and all Daryl could do was stare at the floor. He didn't know how to comfort her. The enormity of what was happening had finally hit him. His whole life was going to change. What the hell did he know about raising a kid? Lord knows his childhood hadn't been all that great. He didn't know if he could do this. _  
_Daryl lifted his head at the sound of the newborns frustrated cry. Bree's hand suddenly went limp in his and she cried out weakly for the baby. He finally braved a look up to see Bree kissing and snuggling the blanket wrapped child in her arms._

"_What is it? Can I see?" _  
_  
"Here you are, Mr. Dixon, your baby girl," the nurse placed the small wailing bundle in his arms, smiling at Daryl's obvious discomfort. "She won't break, I promise." _


	3. Chapter 3

**The Reason Why - Chapter Three**

Daryl stood on the porch of the tiny house, unsure of whether he should ring the doorbell again or just walk right in and see if anyone was home. It was quiet inside; maybe they'd already left for Atlanta. It would be just like Bree's mother to round up the family and just leave, not saying one word to him about their plans. That bitch had never liked him, right from the start; she never wanted him around 'her' granddaughter. Angel wasn't his daughter according to Bree's mother. She wanted nothing to do with the Dixon family, such as it was, and only allowed Daryl his monthly visit because he was paying child support. She could try to deny that Angel had Dixon blood flowing through her veins, but Daryl knew better. His daughter was a dead ringer for his mama. The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. He was about to barge in the house, when he saw the door open a crack.

"Who is it?"

"It's me, Bree. I'm here to -"

"Damn it, you ain't supposed to be here, Daryl."

"I ain't leaving, Bree, So you let me in, or git out of the way, cause I'm coming in anyway."

Bree sighed, "Jus' come in. But be quick about it, here?"

Daryl pushed the door fully open, and stood for a moment, letting his eyes adjust to the dim interior.

"What the hell?" Daryl looked around the room in confusion. The last time he'd visited, the house had the comfortable mess of a house that a little girl lived in. Now...Daryl couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"What the hell you want, Daryl?" Bree flopped down on the sofa and groaned.

The house wasn't the only thing that had changed – Bree seemed to have aged ten years since the last time he saw her. Her once pretty face was now marred with pock marks and dark circles that almost encompassed her eyes. Her normal outfit of tight fitting jeans and clingy t-shirt now looked ridiculous on her more mature body. Daryl took in the sores and scars that ran up and down her arm and wondered just what exactly had been going on in this house.

" I wanna see my daughter, Bree."

"It ain't your time. I can call the cops on you, ya know."

"Looks like I probably could do the same," Daryl muttered. "She with your damn mother?"

Bree sighed and let her eyes flutter closed. "I don't wanna argue with you. I'm too damn tired."

"Where is she?" Daryl leaned over and grabbed Bree's arm, pulling her up off the sofa. He wasn't trying to hurt her. He just wanted his little girl.

"Hold yer horses." Bree yanked her arm free and walked over to the bottom of the stairs. "Angel? Git your ass down here! Your daddy is here to see ya!" Bree settled down on the sofa again, pressing her palms against her forehead. "There, ya happy? If the child minds me, she'll be down in a minute."

Daryl shook his head and stood near the stairs nervously waiting. After a few moments, his daughter appeared at the top of the stairs. She stepped onto the first step and then hesitated, her small foot hovering over the next step.

All Daryl could do was gaze at her in wonder. It seemed so long since he'd last seen her. He couldn't believe she'd gotten so tall. She was thin, too thin, he thought. Her pretty, though pale, face was framed by long blonde hair that hung straight down to her shoulders. She stared at him intently with crystal blue eyes and her slightly open mouth revealed tiny white teeth with several spaces in between that hadn't been there last time. She was so beautiful. Daryl still had a hard time believing she was his, that someone so pretty could have come from him. "Angel, darlin'." Daryl said, huskily, his voice cracking. "Daddy missed you somethin' awful, baby. Come down and let me see you, sweetheart."

Angel nodded her head and slowly shuffled down the staircase. When she reached the bottom, she stayed on the last stair, holding firmly to the banister and letting the toes of her bare left foot trace patterns on the carpet runner.

Daryl held out his arms. "Don't ya wanna come and see your daddy?"

Angel nodded again. She took the final step down and walked over to Daryl with her chin tucked against her chest and her arms firmly crossed.

"You mind if I pick you up for a hug?" Daryl awkwardly knelt down, still holding his arms out to her.

Angel lifted her head slightly, one eye peeking out from behind a curtain of blond hair.

"You give your daddy a hug, girl!" Bree ordered. "He can't stay long. Wants to see you for some reason."

Angel looked over at Bree, who motioned her toward Daryl, then walked into Daryl's waiting arms. He wrapped her in a bear hug, breathing in the faint scent of soap and shampoo that lingered on her hair. For a moment, he thought she was returning his hug, but after the initial squeeze of her arms, they hung limply at her sides. The stab of pain that hit his heart at that rejection was a familiar one for Daryl.

"How have you been, darlin'?"

"Alright." Her quiet little voice tickled his ear.

"Just alright? Your mom bein' good to you?"

"Mommy is bein' silly, daddy." Angel nestled her head in the crook of his neck and whispered in his ear.

Daryl let his eyes drift over to Bree only long enough to take in the woman who appeared to have passed out on the sofa. "Bein' silly, huh?"

Angel nodded solemnly, her eyes wide. "Really silly."

"Let's sit over here and you can tell me about it." As Daryl settled his daughter on his hip he could feel her belly rumbling against his side.  
"You had anything to eat this morning, sweetheart?" Daryl set Angel on a threadbare chair set over in the corner of the living room. Kneeling down, he took her hands in his and leaned forward until his head bumped against hers.

Angel leaned away from Daryl as shook her head slowly, exaggerating the side to side movement. "No, daddy. Mommy had company last night so I had to stay in my room until just now."

"You were locked in your room when I came in?"

"Uh huh." Angel wriggled back in the chair, until she was tucked in the corner. Once settled, she rested her chin on her knees and solemnly stared at Daryl. "Mommy told me to stay in there until she came and got me."

Daryl could only imagine what had been going on in the house while his daughter was trapped in her room. He clapped his hand on his knees and stood up. "Tell you what, stay here, daddy'll be right back." Daryl assured her. "I'm gonna see if I can't find you something to eat." He stormed through the small room and burst into the kitchen. He tore open the refrigerator, only to shut it quickly in disgust. What little was inside had long ago gone bad. The contents of the kitchen cupboards weren't much better. There was something that looked like it might have been chicken under a towel on the counter. Daryl lifted the towel and nearly threw up at the smell. The sink was full with a mound of dirty dishes. His anger had reached the boiling point. Daryl took a swing at the cupboard and slammed his first into the door. "Shit!" The pain was immediate and made him focus his attention. He shook his fist as he leaned against the greasy kitchen counter and took several deep breaths. He needed to calm down before he went back out to Angel. Poor kid was already terrified of him. Always had been, her grandmother had made sure of that. He didn't want to scare her by charging out there like a mad man.

Daryl returned to Angel's side and took a good look around in the living room. It was cluttered with trash – garbage bags and pizza boxes were strewn around the room. More dirty dishes littered every surface and dirty clothes lay in piles. Dust was layered over most of the furniture, billowing up when he smacked the arm of the sofa with his good hand.. He breathed in, taking in the telling aroma of marijuana in the air. Looking closer, he spied a small bowl with a spoon and pipe resting inside on the table in front of Bree.

That was it. He couldn't take anymore and any rational thoughts he had were outweighed by his anger at the squalor his daughter was living in.

"Bree!" Daryl hollered, "This what my money goin' to, Bree?" Daryl flipped the table in a fit of rage. "That damn money was for Angel!"

"What? What the hell Daryl?" Bree's eyes flew open at the crash of the table.

"This!" Daryl picked up the bowl and hurled it at Bree. "You're spending my daughters money on goddam cocaine!"

"I got needs too, Daryl. You never give me nothin' " Bree tried to stand, stumbled, tried again and gave up, falling back on the sofa with a groan.

"I work my ass off to provide for her. I don't got much, what I got is meant for Angel. You damn well know that!"

Daryl considered leaving Angel sitting across the room while he dealt with Bree, then he paused and looked over to her. She was still huddled on the chair with her knees drawn up to her chest. Tears were streaming down her thin, pale face, and her hands were firmly clapped over her ears. Daryl immediately picked her up and hugged her close to him. Holding her would keep his temper in check, he was so furious, who knows what he would do if his hands were free.

"Angel tells me you locked her in her room," Daryl growled at Bree, who was still laying on the sofa.

"She weren't locked in!" Bree protested. "I just told her to stay in there while..."

"Just stop!" Daryl barked. "Angels goin' with me, Bree." Daryl looked down at the woman in disgust.

"You can't take her." Bree slurred. "We got an 'greement."

"I don't give a damn 'bout no agreement!" Daryl hollered at her. "You out here, screwing around, snorting coke, getting high and Angel is goin' hungry? You think that's okay with me? You can go to hell!"

"She's...she's my daughter." Bree tried to stand once more.

"She's mine." Daryl snarled, pulling Angel even closer to him. "You ain't any kind o' mother to her."

"I'll fi...I'll fight you." Bree finally managed to get to her feet, and snatched her hand out to Angel. Angel whimpered and drew her legs up and away from her mothers grasp. Daryl moved quicker than her and Bree grabbed empty air. "My ma will make you give her back."

"All you care about is the money! All you ever cared about was the money! You could care less 'bout her. How can you let your own flesh and blood live in a shithole like this?"

He could feel Angel bury her face in his neck, her thin body shivering in fear. He tried to comfort her by whispering in her ear. "It's okay, darlin', everything is gonna be okay."

"Where you takin' her?" Bree whined.

"Away from this. You ain't gettin' her back, neither." Daryl turned his back on Bree and walked over to the stairs. He sat down and clumsily tried to dry Angel's tears as she trembled against his chest. "Sweetheart, everythin' is okay. Daddy's not mad at you. Not one little bit. We're gonna go away with Uncle Merle."

Angel's eyes widened as she stared up at him. "Uncle Merle don't like me much. He scares me."

"Your Daddy will make Uncle Merle behave, sweetheart, don't you worry. It's gonna be like a little adventure, alright? We can't take a whole lot, but you can pick out something to bring with you, a toy or a doll or somethin', how does that sound?"

"Can I bring Barbie and her house?" Angel leaned into his chest again and dragged her hand across her eyes.

"Sure, but just Barbie, we don't have room for her damn dream house."

"It's okay." Angel hung her head. "Do we have room for me to bring Mr. Stuffy Bear?"

"I think we can make room for Mr. Stuffy Bear. We'll make him sit with Uncle Merle." Daryl winked at Angel and was elated when he was rewarded with a small smile.

Daryl found a pink backpack in her closet and he held the clothes up to inspect them before stuffing them into the bag. The outfits were all threadbare, most of the jeans and pants had holes in the knee and frayed hems. The little tops looked too small for her willowly frame. He wondered how much of this shit even fit her properly. Lord knew what she was wearing barely fit her. Her jeans were full of holes and her pink and white shirt showed a broad expanse of her belly when she lifted her arms. He spied a couple pairs of shoes poking out from under the bed. He pulled them out and frowned at the sight of the worn soles and holes at the toes. Daryl studied the room as Angel scurried about finding things from her meager possessions that she wanted to take with her. There was a small dresser that he remembered bringing over from the Dixon house. She had a couple of rag dolls sitting on top, their button eyes glaring at him, seeming to accuse him for abandoning his daughter. He sat heavily on the little white bed that was decorated with a frilly pink throw and buried his face in his hands. He had wanted so much more for his little girl and all she ended up with was little more than what he had as a child. Things would be better now. They'd get to Atlanta, get vaccinated and find a secure location to wait for this all to end. He get a good job. He choked back a sob and smiled slightly as Angel jumped in the air, squealing in delight at something she found over in the corner. Things would be different for Angel now, he vowed to himself, no matter what.


	4. Chapter 4

**The Reason Why - Chapter Four**

"Well, well, well. Looky what the cat dragged home."

Merle rose up from his seat on the the broken stoop of the Dixon house as Daryl drove up. He could see Angel sitting in the passenger seat, staring at him wide-eyed. Whether it was with fear or mistrust, he couldn't tell. Merle chuckled softly to himself. Daryl had finally manned up and claimed what was his; it was just too bad it had to happen when the world was going to shit.

He watched as Daryl shoved the door of his beat-up vintage Ford truck wide open and jumped down from the drivers seat. He ran around to the passenger side to help his daughter out of the vehicle. Angel shadowed Daryl to the house, not leaving his side more than an inch or two.

"Hey there little darlin'," Merle moved closer to Angel, laughing when she ducked behind Daryl, hugging his leg so tightly her little hands were turning white. "Ain't you a pretty little thing? You look just like your daddy when he was your age. He was a pretty little thing too."

"Shut up, Merle," Daryl placed a protective hand on Angel's shoulder.

"His hair wasn't quite as long as yours though," Merle reached out to pat the little girl's blonde head and she cowered even further behind Daryl. He could feel her quaking when she leaned into his back.

"Don't you touch her," Daryl warned. "She's scared."

"Scared?" Merle scoffed. "Scared of what? We're family! Ain't that right, Angel-baby?"

"You know damn well what her gramma told her about me and how she..." Daryl trailed off, not wanting to let Angel hear exactly what he thought of her grandmother.

Merle knelt down and chucked Angel under her chin, lifting her head up. "You're not afraid of me, are ya, Angel? You're not afraid of your Uncle Merle?"

Angel only stared mutely at Merle.

"Leave her be, Merle." Daryl shoved Merle away and nodded in satisfaction when his brother landed with a thump on his backside. "We're goin' inside, Angel needs to have something to eat."

"We need to get goin' now, little brother," Merle warned, as he stood and brushed his hands on his jeans. "Get that kid back in the truck and let's go!"

"She needs to eat." Daryl moved closer to his brother and lowered his voice so that Angel couldn't hear him. "I don't know when she last ate, she's probably starving. Just let me give her a little something, okay?"

"You tryin' to tell me her momma didn't feed her this morning?" Merle smirked. "I thought she loved the little princess."

"Her momma had her locked in her room while she had company." Daryl's low tone was bordering on anger. "All I'm gonna do is feed her some breakfast, then we can get on the road."

Daryl turned away and began to usher his daughter into the ramshackle house.

"Her momma had company!" Merle grinned down at Angel. "Your momma is a real good hostess, why I remember one time when she had me over for -"

Daryl changed direction and charged at Merle. "I said shut the hell up!" Merle grunted as Daryl shoved him against a tree. "She knows what her momma is like! Leave her the hell alone!"

"I'm just trying to be friendly, little brother, lighten up a little." Merle pushed Daryl away roughly. "Go feed your damn kid. And be quick about it!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Daryl took Angel into the house and gestured for her to sit down on the worn sofa. Angel immediately pushed herself into the corner, pulled her legs to her chest, and looked around the dimly lit room.

Daryl followed her gaze, taking in the meager furnishings, the dirt and the dust. "I know it looks like shit, but this is home," Daryl muttered. "Let me get you something to eat, okay? I think we got some breakfast stuff here."

The Dixon kitchen unfortunately held little more than Bree's had. Daryl managed to find cereal and milk and some orange juice. He set everything on a rusted metal tray and placed it in front of Angel. "Eat up, darlin'. We gotta get goin' soon and I don't wanna leave knowin' you're hungry."

Angel eyed the food warily.

"It's not rotten," Daryl promised. "It might not be much, but at least it's fresh."

Angel picked up the spoon and took a small mouthful of cereal.

Daryl offered her a small smile as she began to eat eagerly. "See, I told ya it was okay."

"Where are we goin'?" Angel finally asked, quietly.

Daryl wasn't sure how much to tell her. She was already so scared of everything. How the hell do you tell a 10 year old that the world as she knew it was ending?

"Well, sweetheart, we need to go to Atlanta. You been to the doctor and got needles before, right?"

Angel nodded.

"We gotta go get some needles to protect us, and they only have them in Atlanta."

"What about mommy and nana?"

"Well," Daryl thought carefully. He couldn't give a shit about what might happen to them, but they were the only family Angel really knew." "Your momma is goin' with Nana to get their needles."

"Why can't I go with them? It's not your time." Angel stated, matter of factly, as she scooped up a large spoonful of cereal.

Daryl stared at her, dumbfounded. "How'd you know?"

"I have a calendar." Angel picked up the bowl and slurped up what was left of the milk. "Can I have some more?"

Daryl took her bowl and refilled it, giving her a generous portion of cereal and milk.

"A calendar, huh?"

Angel nodded. "Tinkerbell."

"Of course."

"I draw a circle 'round the days I go with you," Angel mumbled through a mouthful of cereal.

Daryl was inwardly thrilled that Angel identified the days that she would be spending time with him.

"You and mommy was fightin'."

"I"m sorry you had to see that, sweetheart," Daryl apologized. "I was mad that she made you stay in your room."

Angel shrugged. "It happens all the time, s'okay."

"It's not okay. Your momma should be lookin' after you better."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
_  
"Can't you shut your brat up?"_

Daryl rolled over and groaned. "She's probably hungry, What do you expect me to do?"

Bree yanked the blankets from Daryl and pulled them over her head. "I ain't getting up, she's had me goin' all day. Give her some of that formula stuff."

Daryl sat up and rubbed his eyes as he yawned. "She don't like that shit. We tried it before."

"I don't care! My boobs are hurtin'. She ain't gettin anything else from me. Just shut her up." Bree turned away from him and burrowed under the covers.

Daryl yawned again and pushed himself off the bed. Angel was almost screaming as he padded quietly down the hall to her room. Daryl entered the room and moved quickly to the crib, scooping his baby girl up and cradling her to his chest.

"What's the matter, sweetheart? Why ain't you sleeping?"

Angel wailed loudly in response.

"You ain't wet or stinkin'," Daryl rocked her gently in his arms. "You want a bottle? It's not the stuff you like, but won't you try it for your daddy?"

Angel wriggled in his arms and wailed again.

"Okay, let give it a try."

Daryl's trip to his daughters room had become a nightly one. He'd quickly figured out that babies didn't sleep much, but Angel seemed to not sleep at all. Since Bree was with her all day, Daryl usually got stuck with the nighttime duties. He admittedly was not around much since Angel had been born, but that was because he'd been trying to find a job. Bree's mother had insisted that Bree stay home with the baby and that if Daryl wanted to be a part of their lives he must get a job to support them. Bree's mother didn't hide her dislike of Daryl and Daryl could have sworn she was going to explode when Bree told her he was moving in with her. Daryl had been uncomfortable with the arrangement himself, but he had the feeling that if he didn't move in with Bree, he wouldn't see Angel at all. So he'd agreed, and so far he managed to resist Bree's demands to get married, a fact that he was sure pleased her mother to no end.  
Daryl shifted Angel to his shoulder and mixed up a batch of formula. Angel's screams had settled down to hiccuping cries as Daryl continued to gently bounce her up and down.

"D'ya miss me? Is that why you wake up so much? You wanna see your daddy, is that it?" Daryl whispered softly to her, as he waited for the formula to heat up. "Well, I miss you too, darlin'." He kissed the top of her head as he plucked the bottle from the microwave.  
Daryl settled into the sofa and pushed the bottle into Angel's mouth. Her little tongue pushed the nipple out and she cried in frustration. "C'mon sweetheart, you need to eat. It's good for ya," Daryl urged. "Try it for daddy." Angel continued to thwart his attempts to feed her the formala, either clamping her mouth shut or pushing her tongue out so that he couldn't get the nipple in. Daryl gritted his teeth and held the bottle firmly to her mouth. "C'mon sweetheart, drink a little for me. Please?"

As Angel continued to refuse the bottle, Daryl began to wonder if his brother wasn't right. Merle had told him he was crazy to have anything to do with the kid. Told him that Bree couldn't prove it was his, she slept around more than any girl in town, so why get attached? But deep down, Daryl knew Angel belonged to him. And as she snuggled into his chest while she lay in his arms, he had to admit that he loved her and he didn't think he had ever really loved anything – or anyone. He thought back to his childhood – the abuse from his father, the neglect from his drunk mother, and being abandoned by his older brother – and vowed that his daughter would never have to suffer any of that, ever.

"Angel darlin', I love you so much. I'm always gonna be there for you no matter what happens. You can bank on that. Your nana will make me angry, your mama and I'll probably fight and I might get mad cause I'm not good at being a daddy, I don't know a lot of stuff, but I'll always be there for you. I'll never, ever do anything to hurt you. Not ever." Daryl bent his head to her and kissed her tiny forehead. "I love you, baby girl."

Angel rewarded him by finally latching onto the bottle and drinking the entire thing.


	5. Chapter 5

**The Reason Why - Chapter Five**

Daryl zipped Angel's pink backpack closed and tossed it into the back of the truck, along with his larger, black pack. Merle had gone ahead and packed while Daryl and Angel had been inside. Daryl nodded in satisfaction at the assortment of camping and hunting supplies that Merle had stowed away in the pickup. They had a couple shotguns, hunting knives, and Daryl's crossbow. The tent that they used during hunts was rolled up under a few tarps and two sleeping bags completed their gear. Tucked in the corner he noticed the tool kit that Merle had been messing with at the garage. Daryl shook his head, a grin on his face. Merle had stolen the tool kit right under his nose.

Angel stared at the knives and guns. "Why do we need all this stuff to go to Atlanta?" she whispered. "Are we goin' huntin' on the way?"

"Didn't your daddy ever take you huntin'?" Merle chuckled and gave the young girl a wink. "Angel-baby, you are gonna get quite the education on this here trip."

"Pay him no mind." Daryl pulled her aside and draped his arm over her shoulders. "We wanna be prepared just in case..." He looked over to Merle for help. His brother just grinned and shrugged his shoulders. Angel was still looking up at him expectantly. "In case, well, in case we can't find someplace to stay. Merle and I, we don't have a lot of money,and we need to save what we have for Atlanta, so..."

"He's tryin' to tell you, sweetheart, that you'll probably be eatin' squirrel tonight!"

Daryl laughed out loud at Merle's outburst then abruptly stopped when he noticed the look on hisdaughter's face. Her lips pursed together and her lower lip jutted out in a pout as a small tear rolled down her cheek. "I don't wanna eat a squirrel."

"Hey! You listen here!" Merle pointed his finger at her as he hollered at the little girl. "You're a Dixon and you're with your daddy now. You coming with us, you gotta do what we do, eat what we eat. Ain't no time for your blubbering, ya hear?"

Daryl knelt down and hugged her tightly to his chest. "Sweetheart, don't pay no attention to him. He's just tryin' to tease you."

"I ain't tryin' to tease nobody," Merle continued. "She's gonna get her eyes opened to the world around her soon enough, little brother. Quit lyin' to her."

"I'm scared." Angel had buried her face in his shoulder and her words came out muffled. "I ain't never stayed outside."

Once again, Daryl looked to Merle for assistance, but he had disappeared around to the driver's side of the truck, slamming the door and honking the horn.

"Angel, it's gonna be alright. Merle and I, we hunt all the time. We know the woods better than anyone in this county. I won't let nothin' hurt you. Not ever. I promise."

Angel stared up at him again, tears shining in her eyes. She sniffled and wiped her hand across her nose. "Pinky swear?"

Daryl looked on in confusion as Angel held her hand out to him with the pinky raised. Angel took his hand and lifted it to hers, pulling on his fingers and bending his little finger to wrap around hers. "Pinky swear. You can't break your promise if you pinky swear."

Daryl swallowed a lump in his throat. "I would never break a promise to you, darlin'." He wrapped his free hand firmly around his other hand, fingers still entwined with Angels. "Pinky swear."

_"Angel?" Daryl slammed the front door shut behind him and dropped his backpack on the floor. "Daddy's home, sweetheart, where you hidin'?"_

Daryl went to the fridge and pulled out a cold bottle of beer. He leaned against the counter and twisted the cap off, taking a long drink. He had put in a hard days work and now he couldn't wait to relax by playing with his daughter. He couldn't believe how much he enjoyed spending time with her. Her infancy had seemed to last forever and had been tiring but he and Angel had created an unbreakable bond. Now that she was three, she was so active and curious. Daryl couldn't wait to see the almost daily changes in his daughter. Merle constantly told him he was getting soft, turning into a pussy, but Daryl didn't care. He loved Angel and he'd come to crave the unconditional love she gave him. Living with Bree hadn't been the best decision he'd ever made. He knew Bree was sleeping around and he knew she was bringing men home when he was working, but he put up with her antics to be with Angel. He couldn't imagine life without her. He walked through the house, curious that there was no sound of running footsteps to greet him, no squeals of delight to hear his voice.

"Angel?"

Daryl frowned. This wouldn't be the first time that Bree had put Angel down for a nap and left her alone while she went to a friends or to the bar. Daryl started up the stairs and began to run when he heard glass breaking, a loud thump and a wail in quick succession.

"Angel!"

Daryl rounded the corner at the top of the stairs and stopped dead. Bree was standing with her arm raised, hand balled into a fist and Angel was cowering on the floor at her feet.

"Goddam it! I'm gonna kill you!" Bree hissed at the frightened little girl.

Daryl ran forward and shoved Bree into the wall. "What the hell do you think you're doin?" he yelled.

"I'm teaching your brat a lesson, lemme go!" Bree twisted beneath him, but she was no match for Daryl's strength.

"Don't you ever raise your hand to my daughter!" Daryl's voice was seething with rage.

Bree struggled to break free of Daryl's hold on her. "Goddam brat broke three bottles of my best perfume," she breathed heavily. "Cost me $50! Each!"

"Cost you nothin'," Daryl spat at her. "I gave you that money and it was to buy shit for Angel, not to spoil yourself!"

Bree got an arm free and smacked Daryl in the face. "Lemme go! She needs to learn to keep her hands off my stuff!"

Daryl lifted Bree off her feet, then released her, letting Bree fall down on the floor. "Slap me again, you best be prepared for the consequences," Daryl muttered. He knelt before Angel and gently lifted her into his embrace.

"You alright, sweetheart? Did you cut yourself?" He noticed some blood running down her arm and he bent his head to examine it carefully. "What were you doin' up here?"

Angel's body was shaking in his arms. "Makin' you a card, daddy, for Daddy's day. Wanted it to smell pretty." She took a quaking breath and tears continued to run down her cheeks. "Didn't mean to break nothin'!"

"It's alright, darlin', Daddy's here,everything is okay."

Bree had pushed herself up to a sitting position. "Little brat needs to learn to not touch things that don't belong to her!"

"You cut her," Daryl accused, his voice low and threatening.

"Did not!" Bree stood, but stayed a safe distance away from Daryl. "She did it herself, goddam brat."

Daryl leveled his gaze at her. "These cuts are all from fingernails, not glass."

Bree shrugged. "So maybe I scratched her, so what? Look what she did!" she gestured to the broken bottles scattered across the floor.

"Don't you ever touch my daughter again, ya hear?" Daryl turned away from Bree and started down the stairs.

"Where you goin'?" Bree looked down from the top of the stairway. "You best not be walkin' out of here!"

"I'm doin' what I should have done when Angel was born!" Daryl slung his backpack over his arm and opened the door.

"You take her out of here and you'll be sorry!" Bree screeched.

Daryl secured Angel in his left arm and lifted his right arm high to raise his middle finger to Bree as he walked out the door.


	6. Chapter 6

**The Reason Why - Chapter Six**

_"I hereby grant that the defendant must maintain a distance of 500 feet from the plaintiff and her daughter..."_

"No!" Daryl stood and pounded his fist on the table in front of him. "She's my daughter, goddam it!"

"Mr. Dixon! Please sit down and let me continue with my ruling. If you carry on with your outbursts, I have no problem changing it."

Daryl sat, reluctantly, and slung an arm over the back of his chair as he glared at his court appointed attorney. The asshole had convinced him that everything would be fine. He told him that there was nothing to worry about. Daryl argued that his brother had told him that the mother always gets the kid, no matter what. Mr. Stanley told him that he was the sole breadwinner in the family, not to worry, he would get custody for sure. Now here he was, sitting in a cheap blue suit that he borrowed from Merle, the same suit that Merle wore to all his court appearances, being told he was losing his baby girl. He tugged at the sleeves of the ill fitting suit coat in frustration.

"As I was saying, the defendant must maintain a distance of 500 feet from the plaintiff and her daughter at all times, except for court approved and monitored monthly visitations."

Daryl swore under his breath and balled his hands into tight fists. He could feel his fingernails digging into the flesh of his palms, but he didn't let off on the pressure. He was afraid that if he didn't concentrate on keeping his hands clenched together that he might hit somebody.

"The monthly visitations will be attended by a court appointed monitor and they will report back to me. If the visits go well, we may remove the monitor at a date in the future." The judge removed her glasses and stared directly at Daryl. "Mr. Dixon, I can honestly tell you that your obvious anger management issues are part of the reason that the monthly visitations are being monitored. We've all heard the plantiff talking about the abuse and seen the bruises - "

"She's a goddam liar!" Daryl quickly stood, tipping his chair behind him. He lunged for Bree, pushing her attorney aside. "I've never hurt Angel. I would never hurt her! It's her!" Daryl stabbed his finger at Bree. "Angel is my life. She damn well knows that I would never do anything to hurt my daughter!"

"Mr. Dixon!" The judge slammed her gavel on the bench. "Sit down, Mr. Dixon!"

"For God's sake, Daryl, sit down." Mr. Stanley pulled on his arm, trying to get Daryl to move away from Bree and her attorney. "You're going to get yourself thrown in jail and never see Angel again. Sit the hell down!"

Daryl righted his chair and slumped over the desk, his head in his hands.

"Mr. Dixon. Please approach the bench."

"Daryl, you need to go up there." Mr. Stanley nudged Daryl, who still held his head, his shoulders shaking.

Daryl stood and walked slowly toward the bench. The judge, an older woman with steel gray hair, looked down at him with a hard stare. Her eyes softened when she saw the tears in his eyes. "Mr. Dixon, I can tell that you love your daughter. I'm sorry I've had to rule this way, but the courts do generally find that the children are better off with their mother."

"Not this time. Angel and I, she's my world. This is a damn mistake."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Dixon. Please try to control your temper and be there for Angel. The monitor will report back to me after every visit. If all goes well, things will look better for you. If she's meant to be with you, it will be." 

"Daddy, why don't you live with mommy?"

Daryl looked down at his daughter, her head was resting in his lap and he alternated between rubbing her shoulder and letting his fingers run through her hair. Daryl had to admit that, even though this "zombie" situation could potentially be extremely dangerous, he was thrilled that it had brought his Angel back to him. He relished this opportunity to spend time with her and to see how she had grown. Since they had started on their "little adventure" a few days ago, Angel had gone from being skittish and nervous around Daryl to refusing to leave his side. She was terrified of the woods and Merle. At times, Daryl wasn't sure which one scared her more.

"I did, darlin', for a bit." Daryl stared off into the trees. Of course, she didn't remember him being there and the fun times they had shared. Angel had been so young when Bree had taken him to court and lied to gain custody of a daughter she never wanted. He hadn't wanted a kid either – until he saw his Angel. "I...your mom and I...we don't always get along. You know that."

Angel nodded and sat silently for a few moments. She lifted her hand to his and played with his fingers. "Mommy told me she never loved you." Angel sat up to lean against him, her blue eyes staring up at him. "Did you love her?"

"I...well..." Daryl stammered. What a goddam thing to tell your daughter. What could he say to that?  
"No, honey, I didn't"

Angel's mouth dropped open, her pink lips forming a perfect O. "You didn't?" She sounded disappointed and it hurt him to have to tell her the brutal, honest truth.

"Nah. I hardly knew your mom when she got pregnant with you." Daryl pulled her closer to him. "You were an accident, neither one of us were ready to have a kid." He saw her face fall and a tear starting to run down her cheek. "But I loved you, baby. As soon as I saw your beautiful face, I loved you." Daryl rubbed his thumb over her cheek, drying the tear. "I stayed with your mom as long as I could, and that was because of you."

"Oh sweet Jesus, enough of this lovey dovey shit!" Merle stomped over to the fire and poked at it with a stick. "The fire's almost out. We need more firewood."

"I want you to be warm tonight." Daryl gently pushed Angel to a sitting position before he stood and offered his hand out to her. "C'mon, let's go help Uncle Merle."

_"Y'all really gonna sit there for the whole time and just write in that damn book?" Daryl scowled at the prim young lady who was there to make sure he didn't hurt Angel during his visit._

"I have to report back on what I see. The judge needs to know how you, your wife and your daughter interact."

"She ain't my wife." Daryl took a drag on his cigarette and glared at the woman. "Never was."

"I'm not her to make judgment calls, Mr. Dixon. I'll stay out of the way and just observe."

"This is bullshit, you know that?"

"I can't comment on it." The woman smoothed her skirt with her hands as she crossed her legs at the ankle, then began scribbling in her notebook.

Daryl stubbed his cigarette out and stood up, anxious for Angel to come downstairs and give him a reason to not be angry.

As he began to pace, Bree appeared at the top of the stairs, Angel in her arms and her mother behind her. Daryl held his tongue. He had a feeling she would be here and he knew she'd be trying to goad him into flying off the handle in front of the monitor. She'd always hated him and this whole custody thing had been her idea. He could hold the anger in for an hour. He had to – for Angel.

"Hello Daryl." Bree greeted him icily, still holding Angel on her hip, even though the little girl was reaching out for her father.

"Bree." Daryl nodded curtly.

"I don't want my daughter leaving the house today. You can stay here to visit with her. Mom and I will be here as well." Bree sounded like she was reciting something she had been practicing all day.

"I was gonna take her to the park." Daryl reached out for Angel, grabbing her hands gently.

"Not today." Bree's mom stepped in between Daryl and Bree. "My granddaughter will not be leaving this house with you." She glared at him, her mouth set in a grim smile.

"Can I hold her, at least?" Daryl ground his teeth, already irritated and it was just the start of the visit.

"Daddy!" Angel pushed at Bree's shoulder, desperate to get to her father.

Bree reluctantly set Angel down and both woman watched with dismay as she immediately ran over to Daryl. He scooped her up and rained kisses on her face. "Hey darlin'. Daddy missed you."

"Love you, Daddy!" Angel held his face in her small hands and kissed his lips.

"Love you too, sweetheart." Daryl held her close to him, just enjoying being near her once again. "I love you so much."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Things gotta be worse than them news folks were saying." Merle stopped, his hands on his hips as he focused on a clearing in the distance. "There's nothin' out there. No noise."

"These woods were never really that full of people." Daryl murmured. He watched as Angel ventured a short distance ahead to gather up small bits of wood for their fire. "Most folks round here live closer to the town."

"We ain't that far from the main road." Merle pointed out. "You heard any cars at all?"

"Nah, man, but it's late. Maybe people are stopping to sleep for the night." Daryl mused, his attention not on Merle, but his daughter. Focused on picking up chunks of wood and awkwardly stacking them in her arms, Angel had wandered away from him, but not quite out of his sight. "Angel darlin', get back here!"

"I don't think so, little brother." Merle had begun walking again, stooping now and again to gather suitable logs to sustain their campfire. "Somethin' don't feel right. There ain't any noise, not even the critters."

"Maybe a storm's comin'" Daryl shrugged his shoulders. People were all on their way to Atlanta, places were bound to be quiet, especially this time of night. Anyone that lived in or near the woods, like them, were probably settling down for the evening. As for the animals, they were quiet because they could hear them walking and didn't want to be discovered. Merle should know that.

"What's the matter? Do you hear something, Merle?" Daryl was getting frustrated with his older brother. They had long ago gathered enough wood to keep the fire burning through the night. He wanted to get back to the campsite and try to get a good nights sleep. They had a long drive ahead of them in the morning.

"Did ya bring anything with ya?" Merle took a few steps and then paused, as he scanned to shadows of the gently swaying trees.

" 'course." Daryl motioned to his knife scabbard attached to his belt. "I always do. There's nothing out there though. Let's get back to the campsite."

Angel yawned loudly. "I'm getting' tired, Daddy."

"C'mon Merle, let's head back. We got enough to keep the fire going through the night. We can gather more before we head out in the morning." Daryl took the few small logs that Angel was struggling with. "We can see better in the morning. Be better prepared for tomorrow night."

"Somethin's out there." Merle was motionless, still scanning the forest. "You think this is a joke, little brother?"

Daryl grunted. "Ain't seen anything other than that news report. I'm not gonna get all fired up 'cause there's nobody in the woods but us."

"Daryl!" Merle barked out his brothers name. "I ain't kidding. I didn't make anything up about this! You need to watch your step. Yours and the princess'." Merle muttered. "This is bigger than you think."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After an early wake up and a quick breakfast over the dying fire, they reached the main road just after 9 in the morning the next day. They traveled along for several hours, Daryl and Angel in the pickup truck and Merle riding behind them on his bike, sometimes beside them if the road was clear, before they hit a traffic jam.

"What the hell people?" Daryl slammed his hand down on the horn. "Somebody needs to move!"

Merle rode his Triumph motorcycle parallel to the battered pickup and gestured for Daryl to roll the window down.

"I'm gonna drive ahead and see what's holdin' everyone up. This mess starts movin,' keep an eye out for me, ya hear?"

Daryl punched the horn impatiently again, frustrated that he couldn't do anything but wait for the traffic jam to clear or for Merle to come back and direct them to a clear route.

"What's happening, Daddy?" Angel leaned out the window and craned her neck to see the road up ahead.

"Get back in the truck." Daryl tugged gently on her pink shirt. "There's a traffic jam up ahead. Uncle Merle's gonna see what's goin' on."

After several minutes with no movement from the cars ahead, Daryl switched off the engine and drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. It would probably be like this all the way to Atlanta. Everyone wanted to get to the city and get vaccinated as soon as possible. To make sure their family was safe. He looked over to Angel, who was cuddling her teddy bear and whispering softly in it's ear. That was all he wanted too. For his family – his daughter and his brother – to be safe.


	7. Chapter 7

**The Reason Why – Chapter Seven**

Daryl grew more frustrated the longer the traffic remained at a standstill. Just after Merle left, the string of cars began to move forward an inch or two at a time and then everything just stopped. Merle had been gone for at least half an hour. Daryl knew he didn't have to worry about his brother, but not knowing what caused the traffic jam did leave a nugget of concern at the back of his mind. Angel was getting on his nerves, climbing around the cab of the truck and complaining about having to sit still. Daryl hollered at her once and immediately felt terrible about it.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. Daddy's just ticked off about the traffic."

Angel squirmed away from him and moved back to the window, sitting in her now familiar pose – knees up, arms wrapped around her legs, head resting on her arms. She glared at him, a frown marring her pretty face.

"I'm bored, Daddy. I ain't got nothin' to do."

"Angel. Sweetheart, I can't make the damn cars move. Lord knows I would if I could."

"You're mean!" Angel yelled at him, suddenly, her voice seeming to echo through the pickup truck. She turned away from him to stare out the dirty window.

"I'm mean? How am I mean to you? What the hell did I do?" Daryl sat there shocked. He knew Angel wasn't entirely comfortable with him yet, but she had never talked back to him or yelled at him.

"I want Mommy! It wasn't your time!" Angel balled her hands into fists and pounded the cracked vinyl seat beneath her.

"It wasn't my time? You're momma teach you that? So, what?" Daryl reached for a cigarette. "You don't wanna be with me, is that it?"

Angel kept her head turned away from him, but Daryl could see tears in the corner of her eyes. "I want my Mommy."

Daryl breathed out a stream of smoke. He knew Bree and her mother, mostly her mother, had poisoned Angel against him. By making sure he never got custody of her and was only able to visit once a month, Daryl slowly, but surely, had become a stranger to his own daughter.

"I can't take you back to your momma. Not after..." Daryl paused. "You don't really wanna go back to her, do ya? She was treatin' ya like shit."

Angel kept her eyes on the people that were starting to mill about on the side of the road. Daryl followed her gaze. Folks were getting anxious and meeting together outside of their cars. What they thought they could do to get traffic moving, Daryl wasn't sure. He rolled down the window and listened to buzz of the clusters of people starting to gather together.

"Am I gonna see Mommy in Atlanta?" Angel finally turned toward him, and it broke Daryl's heart to see the tears freely running down her cheeks. He had to tell her the truth, the chances of Angel ever being with her mother again were very slim. He hadn't told Bree anything about where they were going and he doubted Bree would have the ambition to travel to Atlanta unless her mother came and dragged her into the car and told her they were leaving.

Daryl took another puff from his cigarette and rolled it in his fingers nervously. "I...Angel, darlin'...I don't know if we'll see your momma again."

Angel's lips started to quiver and her tears flowed. " I need Mommy!" she wailed.

Daryl hesitantly reached out to his daughter and then pulled his hand back, unsure about how to react to her outburst. "Angel, I love you sweetheart. I don't know."

"Mommy said you don't love me." Angel spit out the words between her tears. "She said that's why you didn't live with us. Nana told me you hated me."

Daryl's mouth hung open in shock. He reached out to Angel again. "Will you come and sit with me, darlin?" Angel pushed herself closer to the truck door and shook her head.

Daryl dropped his hands. "Sweetheart, I don't know what to say. I'm not good with this shit. I love you." Daryl looked forlornly over to his daughter, who was intent on ignoring him. "I didn't want a kid. I had a shitty life and had no right bringing a baby into it. But I loved you as soon as I saw ya. I tried livin' with your ma, but she drove me crazy. I came home from work one day and she was screamin' at you and tryin' to hit you. She never looked after you right. Never treated you the way a little girl should be treated. I had to work. I had to so that you had food and clothes. Your ma didn't do anything for ya. I hated leaving you alone with her and I missed you so goddam much." Daryl couldn't bring himself to look at Angel. He could feel his own tears threatening to fall and knew looking at his daughter again would send him over the brink. "That day...I was so angry at your ma...there was no way I was going to let her hurt you. I promised you when you were just a tiny baby that I would never, ever let anyone hurt you. So, that day, I took you away and brought you back with me. I had you with me until your ma took me to court to get custody of you. She won." Daryl drew in a ragged breath. "That's why..." He shook his head and covered his eyes with his hand. He didn't want to cry in front of Angel. As Daryl was trying to compose himself, he felt a hand on his leg and looked over to see his daughter's blue eyes shining up at him. "I love you so much Angel." He brushed his hand across her cheek, wiping away her tears and Angel repeated the gesture, her fingers tender on his face. Angel crawled into his lap and circled her hands around his neck.

"I'm sorry, Daddy," Angel whispered, her lips tickling his ear.

"Don't be sorry, baby. I haven't made things easy for ya, taking you from your momma like that."  
Daryl wrapped his arms around her tightly, cherishing the feeling of being able to hold his little girl. The feeling of his little girl hugging him back - the feeling of her love. It had been too long since he'd felt that.

"I'm that one that should be sayin' sorry to you. You didn't ask for any of this."

"_What the hell is this?" Jerry Riley, the owner of the garage, stood up from behind his desk. He glared at Daryl as he nervously entered the building through the main door. He'd only come through this door once, when he came to ask for a job._

"_This is my daughter, Angel." Daryl carried Angel into the tiny reception area that was bright and inviting despite its size. It sat in direct contrast to the dark, dirty and crowded garage. Daryl set the plastic grocery bags holding his lunch and Angel's things on the floor by his feet, then perched Angel on the edge of the paper strewn desk, keeping his hands on her shoulders to guarantee she didn't fall._

"_Hi!" Angel smiled and waved at the older man._

"_You can't bring her to work, Dixon!" _

"_Mr. Riley, I got no one to leave her with. I'm gonna try to get someone to help me out with her, but until then..." Daryl's voice trailed off._

_Jerry always reminded Daryl of Elvis Presley, if Elvis had no hair. He'd had worked as a mechanic all his life and didn't take shit from anyone. He recalled how eager Daryl had been for a job and how he had hired Daryl because he was good with motorcycles, did decent work and always showed up for his shifts, unlike some other mechanics he'd hired in the past. "This why you were so hungry for a job?" He crossed his arms over his chest and looked from Angel to Daryl. "It's not safe in here for a kid, Dixon, what if she gets hurt?"_

_Daryl circled his arm around the little girl, who was playing with a bracelet hanging on her tiny wrist. "She's a good girl, sir. I brought some coloring books and stuff for her; she'll stay out of my way. I promise."_

_The older man chuckled softly to himself as Angel clapped her hands and spontaneously gave Daryl a kiss on the cheek. "Where's her mother?" Jerry unbuttoned his suit jacket and settled with a sigh into the creaky wooden chair behind the desk. He steepled his hands under his chin and studied Daryl carefully._

"_We aren't together anymore, sir. Angel was in danger with her, is all I can tell ya."_

"_Dixon, I just don't know..." Jerry shuffled a few papers on the desk and pulled some work orders from a teetering pile that had a roll of tape balanced on top of it. "We have a lot of work to get done this week."_

"_Please sir, I need the money. I gotta work to take care of her. I swear to god she won't be a problem." _

_Angel reached up and tugged a lock of Daryl's hair. "Daddy, I gotta pee," she said, loudly._

_Daryl smiled sheepishly. "I'll be right back sir." He picked Angel up and automatically headed for the mechanics bathroom off to the side of the garage._

"_Dixon."_

_Daryl groaned and swiveled around to face Mr. Riley. Angel was notorious for telling him she had to pee when it was already too late to get her to a bathroom. _

"_That bathroom isn't fit for man or beast, take her into the office bathroom."_

_Daryl grinned and trotted toward the door behind the desk._

"_And Dixon?" _

_Daryl looked back, willing his daughter to hold her bladder for a few minutes more. Mr. Riley didn't look up; he was still shuffling papers and writing notations in a ledger._

"_I'll talk to the girls in the office when they come in, they might be willing to look after this little cutie until you can make other arrangements."_

"_Thank you sir!" Daryl offered his boss a rare smile._

"_You make that garage bathroom your first priority this morning!" Jerry smiled as he called out to Daryl's retreating back. _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"More lovey dovey shit? You two are makin' me sick!"

Merle pulled up beside the truck and switched the motorcycle engine off. He could see Daryl, his daughter on his lap and their arms wrapped around each other. Daryl's head was gently resting on Angel's, his eyes closed. Merle smirked as he watched them sleep. Daryl had always been the sensitive one in the family. Merle often wondered if it was because Daryl had basically grown up alone. Their mother had killed herself when Daryl was about the same age as his little princess. Drunken bitch had burned their house to the ground while she slept and Daryl watched. Merle had left for the Army as soon as he was old enough. Their bastard father had beaten him every day of his life that he could remember and he had the scars to prove it. He'd taken it though, not always silently, hoping to save Daryl from his father's wrath. Daryl had never mentioned anything about being beaten and Merle was thankful for that. The kid had been way too young to have his back split open with the business end of a belt on a daily basis. The old man must have gotten it all out of his system before he left. Merle hadn't wanted to leave Daryl alone with him, but he knew that he would kill the elder Dixon if he had stayed much longer. Their father disappeared sometime after Merle had returned from his second stint in the corps. Neither one of them knew where he had gone, and if they were honest, neither one of them really cared.

Merle glanced at Daryl and Angel, both still sleeping peacefully. He had never expected Daryl to get seriously involved with a woman. Daryl always attracted the ladies at the bar, but he'd shy away from them when they came onto him. The ladies loved his pretty boy looks but Daryl didn't want anything to do with them. Merle knew he wasn't innocent; he'd made sure of that. It was a big brothers job to make sure his younger brother was properly introduced to a woman's charms, right? And he'd heard Daryl and random young ladies carrying on like wild hounds on rare nights when Daryl had gotten shit faced drunk and just didn't care what the hell he did. But Daryl didn't partake a whole lot of those womanly charms. That's why he'd been so surprised when Daryl had told him he'd knocked up Bree Porter. Merle snorted at the memory. Bree Porter – Macon County's gift to horny men everywhere. She'd suck a lamp post if it would buy her a drink and fuck it to score her a hit. He'd told Daryl to tell her to go fuck herself and find some other patsy to raise her kid, but Daryl insisted the kid was his. The idiot had even moved in with her. He remembered Daryl bringing Angel home just after she was born. He was so proud of her. His face was lit up and he couldn't stop smiling. Merle had made sarcastic jokes about who her real daddy was and Daryl had left angry. Merle had to admit though that Angel did resemble their dearly departed momma, and she certainly had Daryl's sleepy hound dog eyes. It had taken too long, but Bree finally showed her true colors and Daryl dragged the kid home to live in their rundown house. Then the custody trial...Merle sighed and shook his head. Too much drama for one kid who never should have been born in the first place. It was time to get back to the present and deal with a shitty world that was going downhill fast. Merle banged loudly on the side of the pickup.

"Time to get up sleepy heads, wakey wakey!"

Daryl jumped at the sudden noise and shouted out as he raised his fist, poised to strike at the intruder. Angel clung to Daryl, her eyes wide with fright. Daryl could feel her heart beating wildly against his chest.

"Damn Merle, what the hell?" Daryl relaxed when he saw the noisemaker was only his brother.

"I hate to bother you two, you looked so peaceful and all, all snuggled up like the perfect family there." Merle grinned at Angel. "But I thought you might want to know what the hell is going on up there."


End file.
